Requiem To The Dark
by Iridescent Hope
Summary: When Yugi falls mysteriously ill, Yami turns to the Millenium Puzzle to find the cure. Instead he discovers an insidious plot for the destruction of all seven Items, and the mastermind behind it all is the one he would never suspect...
1. Prolouge

Author's Note: This is the prologue to something _much_ greater. It had simply been a random whim to start this story and it quickly grew in size to monstrous proportions. Le sigh.

I would also like to say that this was started _before_ I had seen the end of Waking The Dragons or any of Ancient Egypt, so consider many parts of this story highly AU. Please don't be angry if I differ from canon, since I already know that my version of what happened will be different from what actually occured.

I don't want to spoil some of the surprises in this story, but let me warn you: There is going to be shounen-ai in this story and plenty of it. I also add my usual warnings ( though again they don't apply to this chapter ) of violence, language, and disturbing imagery.

**Prologue - Alone**

_I sense there's something in the wind  
__That feels like tragedy's at hand  
__And though I'd like to stand by him  
__Can't shake this feeling that I have  
__The worst is just around the bend_

_-_ Verse 1, Sally's Song ( Nightmare Before Christmas OST )

She stood alone.

A cold wind picked up, pulling at the flimsy pink material that served as her skirt. Clothing had never been overly important; she wasn't truly alive – nothing here was – and as long as she stayed here modesty was never an issue. Old habits died hard, though, and were even more reluctant to come back.

She tugged the material down. Awkward. Forced. Still, she tugged, simultaneously at the skirt and at the corners of her mouth. A smile. Something else not needed, hard as that was to see.

Depressing. Now what? Yes, frown. The movement felt even stranger; a forced relaxation of muscles that had been set in the same position for years. Still, smile and frown. That mattered where she was going.

Slowly raising her arms to the sky, she tilted her head back, blue and pink cap falling to the ground, exploding in a shower of rose petals before actually touching it. Her blond hair was immediately snatched up by the wind which greedy yanked and twisted every strand it could get a hold of. Blue eyes never wavering, she brought her arms together, hands clasping tightly around the blue rod.

"You don't have to do this." Words echoed soundlessly in her mind. He wasn't here, couldn't – wouldn't – be bothered with her. Do what you want. He had told her that and she took that statement to heart. Do what you want. She wanted to defy him.

"You don't have to do this." She ignored the silent specter, slamming the bottom of the rod into the ground, murmuring the incantation he had taught her so long ago under her breath. Breathe, yes. She needed to learn how to breathe again. The world she had lived in for so long exploded around her.

She stood alone.

_-Elsewhere-_

Yugi woke, screaming. Try as he might, Yami wasn't able to calm his aibou's nightmares.

"She stood alone."


	2. Chapter One

Author's Note: Well, I feel a bit of explanation is in order. First, yes, this is now officially AU. Too much of it differs from the canon for it to be otherwise. Secondly, the premise behind this chapter was originally supposed to be its own story, but an insidiously devious and seductively good plot bunny worked its way into here, thus creating the monster that will follow. Most chapters will follow this format, focusing mainly on a subplot of the story with bits and pieces of the actual plot floating around, and the focus will shift more towards the actual plot as time goes by. There are 8 chapters planned, not including prologue and epilogue. The only way that will change is if I decide to break one up into two, making 9.

Again, warnings for shounen-ai ( between who I'm not telling ), language, some violence… and Yugi's OOCness is blamed on his lack of sleep.

The '-7-' mean a scene change. hates the way I normally do it, so I picked that... cause I'm special. -0, which will probably be used only in this chapter, represents a flashback.

Scarab Dynasty – Yes, you are the first and only one who reviewed, so consider this chapter dedicated to you. I'm not going to tell you who the Requiem's for – that would ruin the plot – but I'm pretty sure it's going to be a surprise. Glad you liked the beginning. I can only hope this chapter meets your expectations as well.

**Chapter One – The Love Triangle and The Missing Pharaoh**

_Now but I can't and I don't know  
How we're just two men as god had made us  
Well I can't; well I can  
Too much too late or just not enough of this  
Pain in my heart for your dying wish  
I'll kiss your lips again_

- Chorus, You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison ( My Chemical Romance )

The forecast for weather that day had said: "Mostly sunny with a 25 chance of precipitation." Yugi would have cheerfully throttled the horribly misinformed weather man at this moment; it was pouring outside and the saying 'raining cats and dogs' came to mind. Though why Americans said that was beyond him, since the rain drops didn't really resemble the furry creatures.

Pulling the door open to enter the museum, he shivered and shook his head, spraying water from his hair and body in a manner reminiscent of a wet dog. The attendant on duty glared at him but couldn't actually give him any verbal reprimand since he hadn't broken any of the rules. Water wasn't welcomed but since he wasn't around any of the exhibits it didn't matter. Still, he smiled somewhat sheepishly, feeling ashamed and embarrassed.

His shoes squeaked horribly as he started to walk. Mentally cursing himself, Yugi wondered why he had left his boots at Jou's house. True, he had wanted to get out of there as soon as physically possible, but did that really mean he couldn't take the five or ten extra seconds to slip on and buckle his footwear instead of running barefoot outside? Luckily he had kept an old pair of chucks in his closet and had been able to change into them when he got home but they weren't nearly as comfortable. And they _squeaked._

"Sir, it's nearly closing time and you're making a mess." The attendant, a middle-aged woman who wanted nothing to do with the sopping wet Thor's Angel boy – oh, he had to be in a gang or why else would he be wearing a leather jacket, collar, and have long dyed hair? – nervously stepped out from behind the ticket booth and started towards him. "And this isn't a free entry museum; you need to pay if you want to see any of the exhibits."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Turning around, Yugi smiled disarming at the older woman, rubbing the back of his head with one hand. "The museum had given me a free yearly pass. Guess it's kind of hard to recognize me with my hair down. I'm Yugi Motou."

The woman stared for a moment, eyes bugged out slightly and jaw slightly dropped. The boy was short, maybe only a few inches over five feet, and his hair coloration did match that of _the_ Yugi… "Oh, I'm so sorry sir! Of course you can go in." Bowing deeply, she retreated back to her booth and waved him on, wondering what she would do if closing time came and he still hadn't left. One couldn't just demand a world-known champion to leave, could they?

Sighing slightly at the attendant's reaction, Yugi hurried on back to the Egyptian Exhibit, smiling at the sight of the familiar ancient artifacts. No matter how many times he came here to see it all, he knew he would never stop being amazed by all the wonderful things. Being here allowed him a glimpse of what it must have been like when Yami was pharaoh and-

And no. Instinctively reaching up to grasp the chain that wasn't there, Yugi shook his head. That was right. The pharaoh could create his own body now using the Puzzle, which meant that Yugi had no need for it anymore. And now that Yami was no longer a part of Yugi's body, he had decided it would be a good time to tell his hikari…

_Dwelling on the past isn't going to change anything and is only going to make it worse._ _Besides, I came here to think and the subject of Yami isn't what I came here to think about. _Nodding affirmatively to his own thoughts, Yugi pushed what had happened between him and Yami to the back of his mind, back to where Jou and Kaiba were currently residing. It made an odd mental image to him: The three of them sitting in a waiting room, flipping idly through magazines until a nurse came out and called their name, telling them that Yugi was ready to think about them now. He giggled and covered his mouth with his hand. The thought of Kaiba waiting anywhere patiently with Jou…

_Maybe when I finally go back home I'll find out that this was all some horribly messed up dream and none of it had really happened… and then Black Magician Girl will tell me that she's been dying to go on a date with me but that Harpie Lady needs to be the chaperone. _Groaning, Yugi leaned against one of the displays of hieroglyphics and tilted his head forward, his forehead resting against the glass. Even his own imagination wasn't letting today rest. So maybe he just needed to give in and really think about everything that had happened, instead of running off like a scared puppy.

**-7-**

"The forecast was wrong…" Resting his forehead against the cold glass of the window, Seto closed his eyes. He was sitting in the kitchen area of his 'house' in a chair that he had pulled up against the window. The gardens that had been planted outside were his favorite place to be whenever upset, but the weather made it impossible to go outside. Staring at them from the inside was as close as he could get.

The rain beat a mourning tattoo against the window, lulling the brown-haired boy into a dreamlike state. Everything felt like it was going wrong lately. Stock prices were falling, rates of defection were rising amongst Kaiba Corp products, and consumer satisfaction was at an all time low. All problems could have easily been avoided if Seto had been paying more attention, but lately his attention had been stuck on a more personal issue…

**-0-** "What do you want, Kaiba?" Inwardly Seto seethed; as much as it chaffed him to be called by his first name as if he were their equal, the multi-millionaire despised it whenever the tri-colored haired boy spit his surname out as if it were a curse. It reminded him of how people acted towards his stepfather and also of how distant Yugi was from him, something that he planned to change today.

"What do you think I want?" Raising his right arm up, Seto smirked. "I'm glad to see you brought your Duel Disk or else this wouldn't be any fun." The sides of the disk disconnected and flew fifteen feet on either side of him, planting themselves then firmly in the ground. They would act as holographic projectors, making the monsters 'real' for this duel.

"I don't want to fight you Kaiba…" Yugi looked down, a strand of blond hair falling forward across his eyes. Raising an eyebrow, Seto noticed that the silver chain and puzzle that he always wore was gone, and instead of the school uniform that he wore even outside of school he had on a pair of snug-fitted black jeans and a black leather jacket. From here Seto couldn't see what he wore under the jacket but could see that he at least still had his black collar.

"Afraid you're going to lose? I've heard rumors about you no longer being the duelist that you used to be. Maybe what people have been saying is true and your edge is gone." Crossing his arms, Seto waited impatiently for the smaller boy to snap out of whatever funk he was in. "Look, I don't know what's wrong with you but I called you here for more than just a duel. If you win you can leave. If you don't… You're going to have to hear my proposition out."

Yugi raised his head and looked at Seto, confused. "Proposition? You don't want my rarest cards?"

"They were the Battle City rules and Battle City ended well over a year ago, if I'm not mistaken. Now, if you're about done…" Drawing six cards from his deck, Seto studied them quickly before picking one out. "I'll start this duel off by playing Hitotsu-Me Giant in attack mode."

Drawing five cards as well and then one more since in was now his turn, Yugi frowned. _Why would Kaiba play _that_ card? It only has 1200 attack points and he didn't even place any cards face down. There can't be a virus or deck destruction card, so then… what is he up to?_ "I'll play Gazelle, King of Mythical Beasts in attack mode! Attack his Hitotsu-Me Giant!"

Since Gazelle had 1500 attack points, Hitotsu-Me was destroyed and Seto lost 300 life points, bringing his total down to 3700. Shaking his head, he drew another card. "Not a bad move… for a beginner." Something about that phrase made Yugi feel even more off put. "Fine then. I'll summon Saggi the Dark Clown, but before I attack with him I'll use Darkness Generator to triple his attack power." Saggi was a weak monster on his own, but the Darkness Generator raised his 600 attack points to 1800. "Say goodbye to Gazelle. Saggi, attack!"

Instinctively raising his arms up to protect himself from the backlash of energy released when a hologram was destroyed, Yugi growled. "I remember this. This is the exact strategy you used on me when we first dueled, card for card. What's with the trip down memory lane?"

Seto laughed, pointing at Yugi. "I just wanted to show that even with cards and a strategy as outdated as this one is I can still beat you. Face it Yugi. You're no match for me. The only reason you won Battle City was because of the three God Cards. If it weren't for them, you would never have claimed the title 'King of Games."

"Then I forfeit the duel now." Closing his eyes, Yugi placed his hand in the graveyard. "If what you say is true then there's no way I could beat you now since I no longer have the God Cards; Yami has them. Even if it isn't, I don't feel like dragging out a worthless battle with you. You win. I'll listen to whatever proposition you have."

Feeling slightly put-off by the way the supposed 'King of Games' was acting, Seto discarded his cards as well, ending the duel. "Very well then. I expected better from you, but I guess the rumors are true. You're a has been." Walking over to the defeated boy, he stopped barely a foot away. "Do you know why I called you here?"

"… Kaiba, didn't you call me here so I could find out why you called me here?" Looking up and raising his eyebrows, Yugi noted the sudden flush that covered Seto's cheeks. _I've never seen Kaiba act this way… being so awkward._

_Why did I say that? Is it possible to be any lamer now? _Fighting the urge to smack himself in the face or melt to the ground, Seto crossed his arms and smirked. "Pretty perceptive. I guess you're not completely losing it, then. We've known each other for over three years now and, as you can see, I haven't forgotten anything that's occurred between us."

More than just a little puzzled and disturbed by this, Yugi reached back to scratch his head. "Um, okay? Is there a poi-mmph!"

The brown-haired boy, knowing that his nerve wasn't going to last much longer, had slipped his hand under Yugi's chin and tilted his head up further. Leaning down, Seto tried to kiss him…

Except the difference in height made him end up getting the bottom side of his nose and cheek instead. Blushing again a brilliant shade of red, Seto bent down a little farther, connecting their lips, and banged their noses together. After twisting his neck a little he finally got it right. _Wow, this isn't nearly as comfortable or rewarding as I thought it would be._

Yugi felt frozen to the spot, reality taking a while to sink in for him. _Kaiba… Kaiba's kissing me!_ Shoving the taller boy back rather roughly, he stared at him with a mixture of disgust and confusion. "What…?"

Realizing that he was going to have to explain quickly what just happened, Seto reached out and placed a hand on Yugi's shoulder. "I-"

Slapping his hand away, the tri-colored haired boy turned. "I don't want to hear it Kaiba." **-0-**

"Niichan? Are you all right?" Mokuba placed a hand on Seto's knee, startled the older boy out of his trance. Looking down and smiling, the older ruffled the younger's hair before getting up, stretching.

"I'm fine. I guess I just dozed off for a moment…"

Not at all put to ease by this flippant response to his question, the black-haired teen grabbed at Seto's sleeve. "Liar. You're still upset over what happened last week, aren't you?"

For the first time ever the elder Kaiba cursed the day his younger brother was born. Why was _he_ so damn perceptive about things that Seto didn't even notice and why did he _always_ know whenever Seto was trying to lie to him? "Niichan-"

"I'm _fine_ Mokuba." Pulling his arm away, he stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind. Mokuba stared after him sadly, wondering what exactly had gone on between him and Yugi to cause his brother to act this way.

**-7-**

He should have taken his coat off sooner; that much Yugi did know. Shrugging out of the sopping wet raiment, he dropped it carelessly on the floor. The museum attendant would have his head if she came back here. After a brief moment of thought he slipped out of his shoes as well, lining them up neatly next to the forming puddle.

Walking away from the mess he had created, Yugi hugged himself, rubbing his arms to try and increase his warmth. Underneath the coat he had only worn a black t-shirt and that too was soaked from the rain outside. He pants hadn't faired much better, but he wasn't about to strip out of them and walk around nearly nude. Then the attendant would take more than just his head if she saw him. After all he had been through, the tri-colored haired boy preferred not to have his cause of death be an enraged museum employee.

A shiver began working its way through his body, much to the small teen's dislike. _I thought mother's said stupid things about catching a cold from being in the rain because they were _moms_, not because there was any truth behind it._ A few moments later, however, his state of health was confirmed: He sneezed.

_Great, so not only am I dealing with two love-struck boys that I don't love and horrible nightmares that have kept me from sleeping the past week, I now have to be _sick._ Thank you God. When I finally meet you_… His thoughts trailed off as he stared up at the hieroglyphical representation of the battle between Yami and the Priest 3000 years ago. Yugi didn't know how he had gotten here – he didn't remember walking all the way down to this room. But he did come here often, so he mind must have set his body on autopilot.

The image of the Pharaoh faded. Blinking and rubbing his eyes to see if he was imagining this, Yugi looked again. The Pharaoh was still gone.

A sudden wave of nausea washed over him and he leaned against the glass of the display, hand pressed firmly over mouth. He could feel the vomit pushing its way up into his throat and he ran to the bathroom, desperate to get there before he finally threw up and gave the attendant yet another reason to kill him. The Pharaoh was forgotten.

**-7-**

An empty bottle slipped from Jou's hand, landing with a muffled 'thump' on the carpeted floor. _My dad's gonna kill me…_ There was no emotion attached to the thought, just a cold, empty, blankness that seemed to grow with every passing moment. Who really cared what his dad did anymore? He had just fucked up his friendship with his best bud and the guy that he, well, loved.

"Stupid Yugi running to _me_ to make everything better," Jou sneered, lurching up from the padded chair to walk of to the bottle, picking it up. "No, stupid Kaiba for fucking everything up to begin with… aww, goddamn you Kaiba! I'm gonna slit your throat with that damn Blue-Eyes card you're so fond of!" Alcohol always made him irrational. Grinning with a slight insane edge he slammed the bottle against the wall, watching with satisfaction as it exploded, sprinkling the floor with glass shards.

_Yug would be pissed if he had been here to see that_. That thought alone wiped any remnants of any good feeling away, leaving the blond-haired boy tired and drained. Only with great effort did he begin to pick up the larger pieces of glass, carrying them carefully into the kitchen to drop into the garbage. He didn't have anyone to blame other than himself. It wasn't Yugi's or Kaibi's fault that he had decided to be such an idiot…

**-0- **"No Ichigo! You can't fall for that jerk Ryou! You and Masaya were meant for each other!1" Clutching his newest Tokyo Mew Mew manga tightly, Jou practically pressed his nose against the pages as he read, his face being that close. The story of the love-struck middle school girl receiving powers to turn into an animal-based superhero was his secret sinful love and the blond-haired boy would die of mortification if anyone ever found out he read them. And quite avidly, too.

The doorbell rang, pulling him out of his reverence of the sacred shoujo manga. Scowling slightly – whoever dared to interrupt Mew Mew time would pay dearly! – Jou walked out of his room, padding down the hall to the front door of the apartment. Removing the chain, he swung the door open, fully prepared to give whoever was on the other side the tongue lashing of their life-

And saw no one. Blinking, he looked down. Yugi was looking up at him, looking as pitiful as, well, Yugi. The smaller boy smiled tentatively at him and Jou noticed the dark purple streaks under his eyes. "Yug! What are you doing here?" Stepping back and to the side, Jou allowed the other to enter.

"Sorry for coming unannounced but…" Bending down to unbuckle his boots, Yugi slipped them off and lined them up neatly by the front door. "I had to get out of my house. I've been going crazy there and Yami hasn't been helping much." Straightening, he rubbed the back of his head, adding: "S'not his fault, really. He's just not used to actually being alive; he's kind of… distracting." Jou noticed the slight flush but wrote it off quickly. Yugi couldn't… with Yami… Naw!

"Well you are in luck!" Clapping a hand on Yugi's shoulder – and eliciting an 'eep' from the startled boy – Jou shoved him gently towards the hall. "My dad's gone for the day so we don't have to worry about him. I dare say you might actually be able to enjoy yourself while at – gasp! – my house. Make yourself at home." Nodding, the smaller teen headed back towards his room while Jou shut and locked the front door. _Yugi came to see me when he was upset and now I'll get him alone in my ro-_

_THE MANGAS!_ Eyes widening with the realization that if he didn't act now his horrible secret would be revealed, Jou sprinted down the hall, grabbing Yugi's arm just before he entered the room. "Wha? Jou, what are you doing?" Without giving an explanation for his actions, the blond shoved Yugi aside and darted into the room, grabbing the pink books and shoving them quickly under his bed. There. Now no one would ever find out.

"Eh-heh, sorry Yug. Just wanted to make sure it was clean before you came in." Laughing somewhat nervously Jou rubbed the back of his head, walking back out into the hall. Yugi nodded and walked into the room, raising an eyebrow. Dirty clothes, crumpled papers, and random books – mostly mangas – covered the floor and bed of the room, making it obvious that it hadn't really been cleaning the blond had been doing in here. "Like I said before, make yourself at home."

Cautiously taking a seat on Jou's bed, Yugi picked up the nearest manga – the third YuYu Hakusho – and flipped it open, idly skimming the pages. Jou sat down next to him, plucking the book from his hands to leave the smaller boy staring somewhat confusedly at his now-empty hands. "So, what's been happening that's been making the almighty, unruffleable Yugi ruffled?" Yugi's response was to practically throw himself on Jou, burying his face in the other boy's chest. "Eh, Yug? What-"

Yugi mumbled something into his shirt, tickling Jou. Laughing despite himself, Jou pushed him back into a sitting position. "Don't do that. It tickles. Now, c'mon, tell Uncle Joe what's wrong."

"Uncle Joe?" Smiling slightly at the odd statement, Yugi rolled his eyes. "Now _that_ would be the family secret no one would ever talk about." They both laughed at that, though there was a twinge of hysterics in Yugi's laughter. After they calmed down, he took a deep breath and sighed, releasing it slowly. "Okay, well… I've just been having nightmares the past week which makes it hard to sleep with and… a few days ago… Kaiba…"

Jou grabbed his shoulders, fingers bunching up the fabric of his jacket, and gave Yugi a slight shake. "What did Kaiba do to you? Oh, I will so kick his ass the next time I see him, I swear!" Yugi leaned away, his expression one of utter bewilderment.

"Erm, Jou, you're… scaring me." Blinking, the blond released him. Since he had been leaning backwards to get as far away from the enraged boy as possible Yugi fell over backwards, staring up at the ceiling. "Well, this works. Kaiba didn't do anything wrong. He just… kissed me."

It took a few seconds for that to completely register. Gripping the bed sheets tightly, Jou looked down at the floor at a complete loss of words. If Yugi returned Kaiba's feelings or felt disgusted before another man cared for him… "… well, that was… a bit unexpected." He smiled, stomach feeling as if it were twisting itself into knots.

Propping himself up on his elbows, Yugi nodded. "Yeah. I feel bad for how I reacted but come on! He just… he had called me for a duel and then he kissed me. Which doesn't sound nearly so bad anymo- I mean, no, not the kiss part, just what he-… I'm going to stop talking now before I shove my foot up to my knee in my mouth." He let himself fall back onto the bed, arms sprawled haphazardly over his stomach. "I really should apologize. He didn't do anything wrong."

"So…" Leaning back against the wall, Jou drew one knee to his chest, carefully thinking how to word his next question. "So you don't care that another guy obviously has a crush on you?" _Well, there, he can't use that against me, can he? _

Yugi emphatically shook his head no, grinning stupidly. "Nope, I don't care about that. In fact, I think… I have a crush on another guy." Sitting up quickly, Yugi grabbed Jou by the shoulders, his face twisted in panic. "Oh, I didn't mean to say that! Don't tell anyone, please?"

Laughing evilly, Jou threw his head back. "You have a crush on someone? That's really difficult to envision. Sorry Yug," he added somewhat sheepishly at the sight of his friend's pissed look. "I won't tell anyone if you tell me who it is. Deal?" Yugi shook his head, letting him go and moving to sit on the edge of the bed. "Huh? Why not? Is it someone that I know?"

Fidgeting nervously and twining his fingers together, Yugi nodded. "Well, yeah. Someone that you've known for a while, too. The whole gang knows him… it would just become awkward for you if you knew."

_This is almost too good to be true… he has to be talkin' about me!_ Tapping his chin with his forefinger, Jou pretended to contemplate Yugi's words. "Hmm, true. So… how about I tell you who _I've_ been crushing on and then you tell me who this mystery man is. Deal?" Extending his hand for the smaller teen to shake it, the blond grinned reassuringly. "It'll make you feel better to know that someone else knows, I promise."

The tri-colored haired boy hesitantly took his hand, shaking it. "All right… but remember what you said. You first."

"All right, well… Yug… I-I think I might, well… I have a crush on you."**-0-**

"And Yug ran away after that." The glass shards slipped from Jou's hand, pulling him out of his mini-reverie. It slit the palm of his hand open, blood immediately welling up and dripping into the trashcan. Staring at the wound with morbid fascination, a horrible solution to his problem suddenly came to mind: Suicide. A few more cuts like that and some hot water and…

_That's the coward's way out. I chose to tell Yug and I'm going to deal with the consequences._ Grabbing a wad of paper towels, Jou pressed them against the wound to stem the flow of blood. _I need to talk to him… and I need to return his boots._

**-7-**

Yugi made it to the bathroom, barely. Leaning over a toilet he heaved, the contents of his stomach making the unpleasant journey back out his mouth. Why human bodies were made so that was possible he didn't know; while having this come out the other side wasn't exactly a desirable choice at least that was where everything normally exited from.

Still feeling rather queasy he righted himself, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. A bit of vomit from his lips left a streak, which was just wonderful. Grumbling to himself, Yugi walked over to the sink, twisting the warm-water faucet on with a bit more force than necessary and scrubbed the back of the contaminated hand. The whole ordeal was disgusting. Cupping his hands under the stream, Yugi took a sip of the water, swishing it between his teeth before spitting it back out. _There, no more vomit flavor… or at least no more overly power vomit flavor. _

Looking up at the mirror to see what else needed to be cleaned – he had felt the vomit ooze from his nose and he didn't want to walk around with _that_ getting crusty up there – the star-haired teen was shocked at how awful he looked. The bags and streaks under his eyes were beginning to look like he had taken eye shadow – dark purple eye shadow – and rubbed it in, and his skin was starting to become the same shade that Bakura's was. White. _I'm turning into an albino. Great…_

Yugi looked away, placing a hand on his forehead. The hand, though warm from just being under the water, felt cool to the touch, confirming the sinking suspicion that had been floating around in his mind. He had a fever, and a pretty bad one for it to hit this strongly this quickly.

**-7-**

Yami sat at the kitchen table, sipping a cup of luke-warm coffee. The taste was bitter but he needed something to help him stay awake; whatever was haunting his aibou's dreams was keeping him awake as well. After all he had gone through to obtain his own human body2 he was beginning to wonder if it was worth it. At least he could get all the sleep he wanted in his Soul Room.

_True, but if I had stayed a part of Yugi forever I would have never been able to talk to him about how I felt for him._ A blush slowly crept over the ex-Pharaoh's cheeks as he thought about the events that had taken place only a few hours prior.

**-0-**A door slammed shut, alerting Yami of the presence of another. Expecting to see Grandpa or Jou or even Anzu from the sound, he was shocked to see his hikari come stomping into the room, throwing his backpack onto the floor. "Hi Yami," he spat out, eyes daring the taller boy to confront him.

Raising an eyebrow, Yami stood up from the bed, stretching his arms up and arching back. "You sound cheerful," he remarked casually, walking over to him. Yugi scowled and glared up at him. "Why, I might even go as far as to say you're downright ecstatic."

"Ugh. You know how to rub me the wrong way, don't you?" Collapsing onto the bed, Yugi buried his face in one of the pillows. Leaning against the door frame, Yami waited for him to relent and tell him what was wrong. As he expected, no more than five minutes passed before the smaller boy sat up, hugging the pillow to his chest. "Okay, so Jou's been completely ignoring me since he decided to blurt out that he had a crush on me and Kaiba hasn't even gone back to school. Mokuba's been picking up all of his assignments. And I haven't gotten any sleep from those stupid nightmares and I guess I'm just a little edgy because I don't want to deal with any of this. It's not fair!"

Yami chuckled, earning him a death glare. "Sorry aibou, but this whole situation… why did you turn Jou and Seto down so quickly? Obviously you were unaware of their feelings so you couldn't have possibly come to a conclusion on your own towards them so quickly." Yugi fidgeted, plucking at the loose fibers on the pillow. "Well?"

"Uhm, cause, you know… Jou's my best friend and Kaiba's… Kaiba. I know how I feel about them." Glancing up at Yami, Yugi sighed. "All right, okay, so there's already someone else that I like and it's not one of them so they had a snowball's chance in hell getting together with me." Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he stretched and made a face. "Oops. Forgot to take my shoes off."

While he was busy unlacing the sneakers – bright green Converse All Stars – Yami walked over to him, crouching down and grabbing his wrist. "Why haven't you picked your boots up yet? They look better on you." Yugi froze, his face slowly turning vividly read from Yami's words. The taller boy chuckled again. "How many years did I spend living with you? Do you really think you could hide how you felt from me?"

"Well, I-" His words of protest were cut short as Yami pressed his lips against his, kissing him. It was clumsy and hesitant and lasted for barely a second before he pulled away, but still… "You…"

Afraid that he has misread his hikari's emotions, Yami stood and took a step back, nervously glancing at the door. He wasn't sure what Yugi was capable of doing in this state of mind and he really didn't want to be endlessly mocked by a certain Tomb Robber for being beaten by his aibou. "I, well…"

"You could have saved me so much angst if you had done that sooner!" Yami relaxed, a grin slowly working its way onto his lips.

"If I had told you sooner than I wouldn't have gotten to joy of watching you get so worked up during all your failed attempts to tell me," The ex-Pharaoh responded. Yugi shrieked and throw his shoe and Yami's head, hitting him dead-on. "… that wasn't very nice." He rubbed his forehead, staring at the offending object that he now held in his hand.

Yugi stood and walked over to him, taking the shoe. "Well it wasn't exactly intended to be nice. Yami… I need to think and I haven't been able to do much thinking lately with you around." Yami widened his eyes, the picture of innocence. "Oh don't you look at me like that. I'm gonna go to the museum. I need to work out some solution to this problem before I end up going crazy." As those words came out of his mouth a bright flash of lightning lit up the room, followed quickly by a rumble of thunder. The two boys stared at each before breaking into laughter.**-0-**

Yugi had then left. Quite unromantic, really, but not much of a surprise. Stories where the two lovers passionately kiss and consummate their feelings after discovering that the other felt the same definitely blew everything out of proportion. Taking another sip of the coffee, he made a face and walked over to the sink, dumping the liquid down the drain.

A sudden wave of nausea hit him, causing him to clap a hand over his mouth and drop the mug. It shattered on the floor, but he hardly cared at the moment. Gripping the edge of the sink tightly, Yami struggled against the urge to allow himself to vomit. After several long, painful moments the feeling passed. Panting, he leaned over the sink, staring down into the silver basin at the remains of the foul liquid. That wasn't what caused that, was it?

_No… there's something wrong with Yugi. I have to find him._

**-7-**

Generally the feeling of nausea went away after vomiting, if only for a short while. That rule didn't seem to apply to this case. Groaning, Yugi slowly made his way out of the bathroom, one hand covering his mouth and one hand clutching his stomach. He felt dizzy and disoriented, redundancy ignored. Wishing now that he had stayed home instead of running off to 'think', he stumbled, catching himself at the last moment on the wall. "Yami…"

Everything around him felt like it was fading and fading fast. His foot slipped and he tumbled forward again, only this time there was no wall to stop him. The floor was rushing towards his face when strong arms wrapped around his body, stopping his descent. Someone – Yami? – was talking to him, asking him if he was all right, but while his body may have been caught his mind was still rushing out of control and the blackness was growing…

* * *

1 – This would be from the beginning of the fourth manga of Tokyo Mew Mew. Not much of a spoiler if you've read any of the series. Why that series? Because the thought of Jonouchi reading and owning something like that is priceless. 

2 – There is a companion piece being written to explain this and has no relevance to any of the events that unfold.


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two – Keep Your Hands Off My Sister and The New Girl**

_You look at me but you don't see  
Understand I'm a sinner  
Don't corner me, don't lecture me  
Raise your hands; you're a sinner _

- Chorus, Sinner ( Drowning Pool )

"Eh, Anzu, are you sure we want to be doing this…?" Trailing after the impatient brunette, Honda scratched the back of his head and shrugged. Despite all the time he had spent with Jou, wandering around in his neighborhood ( and especially his apartment complex ) gave him the chills. His memory of the last time the blonde's friends had decided to check up on him at home on added more to Honda's uneasy. "I mean, we could always just give him a call."

"And have him ignore it the way he's done for the past week?" Shaking her head, Anzu planted herself firmly in front of the battered brown door ( the tarnished gold '302' labeled it as the Jounouchi residence ) and slammed her fist against it. "I'm sick and tired of having to take care of Jou's schoolwork Whatever's bugging him, he can come out and face it himself."

"Yeah, but his dad-"

"Honda, we have faced crazy mad-men bent on world destruction. We have fought real – not holographic, _real_ – duel monsters. We have spiritually traveled back in time to aid Atemu in a battle against the dark spirit in Bakura. Are you telling me you're really _afraid_ of Jou's father?" Anzu tilted her head to the side and gave Honda a level gaze; the other had the decency enough to look ashamed. "Damnit, Jounouchi! Open-"

The door swung open and both Anzu and Honda started at the sight of Jou. He was dressed in his school uniform with his backpack slung over one shoulder. Looking first at Anzu and then at Honda, the blond blinked in confusion. "There a fire at the school or something I should know about?"

"Well, er, we…" Anzu blushed and looked down, straightening the front of her skirt. "We were just stopping by to see if you were going to come to school today."

Jou blanched and stepped out of his apartment, shutting the door hastily behind him. Despite his resolve to go speak to Yugi, his cowardice had won out and Jou had spent the better part of a week hiding at home and ignoring any calls. His father had repeatedly threatened to 'beat the living daylights out of you, boy!' but as long as Jou stayed mostly unnoticeable locked back in his room the older man didn't really care. _So much for fatherly love_. "Eh, well, takin' care of my father and all that. Sorry for worryin' you guys."

"Jounouchi!" Anzu clapped a hand over her mouth and pointed at his left hand. The blond looked down and sighed. The cut on his palm had been deeper than he first thought and he had bandaged it to help it heal.

"Oh, that. Just, uh, you know… cleaning up after my dad…" Honda made a sympathetic noise and clapped a hand on Jou's shoulder.

"You're a real good son Jounouchi. Your dad doesn't deserve to have you taking care of him."

"Eh-heh, yeah." Feeling something dying inside at his friends' words, Jou forced a smile and pulled away from Honda. _They wouldn't be saying the same things if they knew the truth._ "Come on, let's just get to class. There's something I need to talk to Yugi about."

Both Honda and Anzu paused and glanced at each other, looking decidedly uneasy. Jou frowned and turned slightly to face both of them. "What? What is it that I don't know?"

"Well..." Anzu sighed. "Yugi's been really sick lately. About the same time you stopped showing up he did. Well, I mean, Yami took his place so he hasn't been any days according to the attendance but… according to Yami, Yugi hasn't been able to sleep or eat much of anything."

**-0-**

"_Uncle Joe?" Smiling slightly at the odd statement, Yugi rolled his eyes. "Now that would be the family secret no one would ever talk about." They both laughed at that, though there was a twinge of hysterics in Yugi's laughter. After they calmed down, he took a deep breath and sighed, releasing it slowly. "Okay, well… I've just been having nightmares the past week which makes it hard to sleep with…"_

**-0-  
**

"He tried to tell me."

"Huh? Jounouchi?" Anzu tilted her head to the side, looking up at the distressed blond curiously. "Did Yugi tell you somethi-?"

"I gotta go. I gotta go see Yugi; I'll be in class later." Both Honda and Anzu watched in dismay as Jou sprinted off down the hall, heading away from their school. Honda sighed and pressed two fingers against his forehead.

"And you felt we had to go check up on him for _this_?"

"Shut up Honda. Just shut up."

**-7-**

"Hello? Grandpa Sugoroku?" The door to the Kame Game Shop was unlocked and Jou walked in slowly. Glancing around the dark interior, he felt along the wall until his hand brushed over the light switch. Before flicking the lights on, he called out again: "Grandpa Sugoroku? Yugi?"

A light turned on upstairs in the hall behind the shop counter and Jou could hear someone shuffling around. Taking the risk of being arrested for 'breaking and entering' ( although, in his defense, he really didn't break into anything ) he slipped behind the counter and started padding up the stairs.

"Jou? Is that you?" Yugi shuffled out into the hall, rubbing one eye with the palm of his hand. Jou paused and looked up the stairs at him. Yugi looked as bad, if not worse, than he had been expecting from what Anzu told him; even from this distance the tri-haired boy looked wane and pale with dark, heavy marks under his eyes.

Jou bounded up the stairs, two at a time, and stopped in front of the sick boy. "Yugi, I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have, I mean, after what you said about Seto and I wanted to stop by to return your boots but I was just… um…" Yugi stared up at the taller boy impassively. "… I'm sorry, Yug."

Yugi finally smiled, allowing Jounouchi to relax. "It's okay Jou. I didn't mean to run away, I just…"

"You said you were havin' nightmares." Placing his hands on Yugi's shoulders, Jou spun the smaller boy around and pushed him back into his room. Meekly complying, Yugi crawled up onto his bed and turned around to face Jou. After dropping his bag on the floor, the blond pulled out the wooden chair at the desk and sat down, tilting it back. "Are you still having them?"

"There's a girl and she's running. She's terrified of something but I don't know what." Lowering the chair back down on all four legs, Jou leaned in closer to listen. "I think she's trying to get away from something. It's not something that's chasing her but it's almost worse that it isn't… she disappears at the end and…" Yugi sighed and placed a hand on his forehead. "I know, it doesn't sound like the kind of thing that should be bothering me. I know I've seen worse things than a panicked girl… but I know her. I just can't remember how I know her and… I'm terrified for her."

"Yug…" Jou got up from his seat and walked over to the bed to sit beside him. Yugi glanced up at him and smiled wanly. "Is this a girl from the past? Maybe something left over from Yami getting his own body?"

"No… No, _I_ know her. Not necessarily Yami… and she's in the present but I don't know where." Yugi groaned and leaned forward, holding his head in his hands. "I know I must sound crazy but I keep seeing her. Even when I'm awake now I see her…" He reached over to the edge of the desk and picked up a piece of paper. Handing it to Jou, he added: "This is her. I see her so often, I drew her."

Taking the picture from him, Jou laid it out on the bed next to him and studied it. It was hard to judge how tall the girl was since there was no point of reference but she was slender. Waist length hair curled down around her back – even though the picture wasn't in color, he could tell it was a lighter shade from the way Yugi drew it. It was the same deal with her eyes; impossible to judge the color but they were light. She wore a simple dress-and-skirt combination and Yugi was right, she did look familiar. Incredibly familiar. But Jou couldn't put a name to her face.

Jou carefully put his arm around Yugi and pulled him into a loose hug. "It's- Jesus Yug, you're freezing!" The smaller boy sniffed and leaned against Jou who tightened his arm around him. "You're sick… maybe that's why you're having so many of these bad dreams. They probably don't mean anything. I bet if you just got a good couple hours of rest-"

"But I can't!" Yugi blurted out, interrupting Jou. "Every time I try to sleep I dream of her and I can't, I can't get any rest… Sorry."

"Don't be sorry Yug. Why isn't Yami here with you?"

"With all the days of school I've missed because of the Duel Tournaments I didn't want to have it marked down that I missed any others." Jou frowned and rubbed Yugi's shoulder.

"I can't stay Yugi, I just wanted to apologize. But when I get to school I'm going to tell Yami to get his stinkin' Pharaoh's ass back here to take care of you." Yugi's eyes widened when he heard this and he sat up suddenly, pushing Jou away. Jou stared at him, confused and hurt. "What? Is that a bad thing?"

Yugi shook his head and looked down. "I didn't want Yami to know. He won't go to school then and he'd just worry about me. He's always been overprotective of me and now that we're toge-" Realizing what he was starting to say, he looked back up at Jou. "Toge… uh… anything I try to turn that into is going to sound just as incriminating, isn't it?" Jou chuckled and nodded. "Oh, damn…"

"So Yami was the guy that everyone in the gang knew, huh?" Jou elbowed him, grinning. "And did you two fall on each other in a messy pile of hugs and kisses when you finally confessed your feelings for each other?"

"No, we-"

"I can just see it now." Raising his voice to mimic Yugi's, Jou clasped his hands together and tilted his head to the side. "Oh Yami, I love you so! Every day that I see you I just want to rip your clothes off and make love to you!" He then lowered his hands, balling them into fists at his side and deepened his voice. "Yes Yugi, I have known this since our first meeting and I too feel the burning desire but I waited until you truly accepted your feelings for me. Oh, Yugi!"

"I hate you," Yugi muttered while covering his face with his hands. "I hope you know that I completely and utterly hate you right now. If Dartz came back and stole your soul with the Seal of Oriechalkos I'd be hard pressed to make myself even _care_ let alone save you, that's how I feel right now."

Jou laughed and clapped his hand against Yugi's back. "Yeah, I'm sure that's how you really feel." Getting up from the bed he leaned down to grab the strap to his backpack. "So I'll tell Yami and I'll try and stop by after school, okay? Though I have a feeling Shizuka's going to have my head for the disappearing act that I pulled…"

"Disappearing act?" Jou blanched when he remembered that Yugi had been out as long as he had; of course he wouldn't know what Jou was talking about!

"Eh, nothing Yug. Just try and get some rest. You know, take a nap and drink some orange juice. Something like that." Yugi nodded as Jou clambered down the stairs and through the shop below. Hearing the bell on the door ring to single it was opened and shut he laid back, sighing. _Even if he tells Yami… what can he do? He can't protect me from my own dreams…_

**-7-**

_I am going to be chewed apart when I get to class_. Jou lurched around a corner, panting heavily. Even if he tried to fake a note from his father it was doubtful the teacher would accept it. His situation was the same as Yugi's; with all the days he had missed because of various dueling tournaments it was important that he didn't miss any more. Probably more so, actually, because of how desperately he was hanging on to his passing grades. _Damnit, I don't need detention to-  
_

"What the _fuck_!" Stopping dead in his tracks, Jou ogled at the sight of his sister, his sweet and innocent baby sister, making out with a certain black-haired dice boy. Shizuka was pressed back against a row of lockers while Otogi ran one hand along her side, the other tangled in her long hair. Both jumped suddenly and tried to turn their activity into something as innocent as possible at Jounouchi's exclamation; Shizuka coughed and stepped to the side, pulling at the hem of her shirt while Otogi stepped back and turned away, turning toward Jou.

"Oh, uh, hi Jounouchi!" He laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head. "I didn't expect to, uh, see you here. How're you doing?"

"You have about ten seconds to explain to me why I shouldn't pound you into next week," Jou hissed through clenched teeth, his hands balled into fists at his sides. Shizuka made a noise of annoyance and stepped forward to be between the two boys.

"Come on you two, play nice." Holding her hands up for a moment to signal both of them to stay silent, the brunette turned to face Jounouchi and jabbed her finger in his face. "I have _no_ idea what your problem is, Mr. I'm Not Going To Show Up To School For A Week For No God_damn_ Reason. I'm more than old enough to start dating. You can't possibly think that I can't go out with someone if I don't want to."

"That wasn't the point." Jou batted her hand away and scowled. "Date whoever you want – well, no, date reasonable people – but sucking their face off in the middle of the hall at school? You don't think there's anything wrong with that?" Shizuka flushed and glowered but said nothing. "You're making it that much harder for me when I have to jump to defend your honor."

"Hey, don't you think you're being a little harsh?" Stepping around Shizuka, Otogi glared at Jounouchi and crossed his arms over his chest. "She's your sister. You're not supposed to say things like that to her."

"Oh, so instead I'm supposed to pretend that things like that never happen and just let her be thrown to the wolves?" Jou grabbed the front of Otogi's white shirt and whirled him around, slamming him back against the lockers. Ignoring Shizuka's shrieks for him to stop it, he hissed loudly into the dice-boy's ear: "If I ever hear so much as a breath of a rumor about you two I will kill you. If you ever do anything to hurt Shizuka, I will kill you. If you are anything short of the perfect boyfriend-"

"You'll kill me." Otogi grabbed Jou's fist and pried it away before shoving the blond back. "I get the picture Jou and I'm not going to do anything like that. I care about Shizuka. Maybe not as much as you but I care enough not to want her to ever be hurt."

"Yeah, yeah…" Jou stepped back and turned toward Shizuka, who turned away from him. With a sigh he placed his hands on her shoulders. "Sis, you know I'm just looking out for you…"

"I know." She nodded and tilted her head back to look at him over her shoulder. "Sorry for reacting the way I did. I was just sort of scared you'd try to rip into Otogi… You'll tell me what happened to you later?" Jou nodded. "Good. Now, let me guess, you're going to need a note for the teacher?"

Otogi grinned and slung an arm around Jou's shoulders much to his displeasure. "No worries there Shizuka. I'll just tell the teacher that he was helping me set up for the exchange student and that's why he was gone."

"Hold up, exchange student?" Both Shizuka and Otogi glanced at each other before shrugging. Jou squirmed out of Otogi's death grip and rubbed the back of his neck. "Who left and who's here now?"

"That's right, you wouldn't know!" Shizuka nodded and pounded her fist against the palm of her other hand. "Haga and Ryuzaki left to go study at some other school down in Tokyo. There's a new girl here… I think her name's Hana. Anyways, she's staying at Otogi's because of all the extra room he has at the shop and _not_ because of anything else. He's been coming and going all week to set up and we'll just say you helped him."

"Wow, um… I don't know what to say."

"How about 'Thank you Otogi'?" The black-haired boy shrugged and grabbed Jou's arm. "Come on, let's hurry before teacher gets _too_ angry with us. All the excuses in the world won't help us if she catches us yapping away out here."

**-7-**

"… and then you take the square root of pi and you multiply that by three…" Jou yawned and leaned back in his chair, trying to feign a look of interest as the teacher walked them through their math lesson for the day. Immediately after showing up for class, and as surreptitiously as he could, he had passed him message on to Yami and the Pharaoh had quickly found a reason to leave school for the day. Otogi was still busy helping 'Hana' get ready for school and Anzu and Honda were mad at him for what had happened this morning. This left him with little options other than paying attention during class…

… or trying to make Kaiba's life hell. Smirking, he glanced over at the young corporate executive. Much to his delight it was obvious the brunette was stressed over something. _Heh, maybe his stock prices have plummeted… or maybe he's still upset over Yug's rejection. Either way, he's miserable and I'm surprisingly not.  
_

"Sorry for being so late teacher, Hana just needed to pick up some books." Otogi rushed in and bowed politely before heading back to take his seat. The teacher nodded and gestured toward the door.

"Class, I would like you to meet Hana Minawara."

"Thank you teacher…" Only half paying attention, Jou barely gave the new girl a glance as she walked in. She bowed to the class and something clicked. He looked back at her again and did a double-take.

She was taller than Yugi ( then again, who wasn't? ) but she wasn't as tall as Anzu. Waist length light-brown hair was held back in a blue hair-clip that matched the shade of her skirt. As she straightened and looked around the class, Jou saw that her eyes were a washed-out shade of pale green. _Oh my god…_

"You can take the empty seat next to Katsuya."

"Thank you."

Jou stared at her wided-eyed as she walked back toward him. _This is the girl that Yugi kept on seeing. She's the one from his picture. _

She's the girl Yugi's been dreaming about!


	4. Chapter Three

AN: So this chapter is, you know… Not the best I could do. But something about this story has possessed me and I have about 18 _million_ stories that come after it. And before it. So, uh, focus on plot and not writing here people.

Oh, side note – There are references here to what happened to the Millennium Items after the duel between Yami and Yugi. Obviously it doesn't follow canon and here's where I'm biting myself in the ass because remember that side note in the first chapter that said something along the lines of "there's a story that comes before that but it doesn't matter!"? Guess what? It matters!

Only vaguely and I think I explained enough that you get what happened but I really should write that one at some point.

Second side note – there are no plot holes. You may think you've found one but really you haven't. You'll see what I mean later.

**Chapter Three – A Little Blood Never Hurt Anyone**

"_Yeah they talk about her  
__She smiles like she's so tough  
__She says: 'Hey, can you talk a little louder?  
_'_I don't think my heart's broken enough  
'But someday we'll all be old  
_'_And I'll be so damn beautiful'"_

- Verse 2, Paper Bag ( Anna Nalick )

_The scent of blood was turning the air into a stinking miasma and she gasped and wheezed. One step, two step, sticky liquid splashed up onto her bare legs and burned. Her strength ebbed and she collapsed to her hands and knees. A harsh voice laughed and she recoiled back into herself.  
_

"_You did this. This is all your fault."_

"_No, that's not true!" The blood congealed beneath her and, try as she might, the girl couldn't free herself from the red web spreading about her. Footsteps splashed before her and her moments became panicked and jerky. There was a sick rip and her left hand tore free, the skin from the palm shredded. Pain radiated down into her wrist and she glanced up. _

Just in time to see the silver blade come slicing down, catching her in the jaw. It easier cut through the skin and tendons but the edge wasn't sharp enough to go through the bone. She screamed – gurgled – and grabbed the blade with her hand. Ignoring her, the man grunted and jerked the blade up, slicing up through her skull and lopping the fingers of her left hand off.

**-7-**

Isis' footsteps echoed down the empty corridor. She shivered and pulled the white woven shawl tighter around her shoulders; even after her many years in service to the Pharaoh it still felt _wrong_ for her to be here. A place so holy and sacred shouldn't be defiled by the presence of anyone unworthy and she was nothing more than a lowly servant.

_A lowly servant with the power of a Millennium Item._ Smilingly wryly, Isis reached up and placed her hand on the light-weight gold necklace. After recovering the Pharaoh's lost name – Atemu – and using the holy power to create bodies for both him and the darker side of Bakura, it was decided that each of the items should go back to their 'original' holders for safe-keeping. While the risk of having one go power crazy was still there, it was better than what could happen it someone was to get all the items. Keeping them together was out of the question. It had taken several hours of arguing and bickering to get her to reaccept necklace but now Isis was glad she had.

After all, the vision she had seen may very well be their only hint to what lay ahead. The smile wiped away, she hurried down the hall and the stairs to the ancient tomb of the Pharaoh below.

**-7-**

_Aibou!_ Racing up the stairs, Yami slapped his hand against the yellow-washed wall as he whipped around the corner at the top. The door to Yugi's room was still open from when Jou had visited earlier and the Pharaoh twisted himself around on the ball of his foot to make a smooth entrance. "Yugi, are you-?"

The words died on his lips when Yami saw his hikari. Yugi was standing at the far end of the room facing the window. His left arm hung limply at his side, his right pressed against his chest in profile. At Yami's words he turned his head, staring blankly at the startled Pharaoh. "… Master…"

"What? Yu- Yugi!" Blood oozed from the corner of Yugi's mouth and the smaller boy's knees buckled. Rushing over to catch him, Yami knelt down to soften his fall. "Yugi, what's wrong with you."

"M-master…" Yugi choked the words out as he reached up with his left hand, cupping Yami's cheek. Something warm and wet and nauseating rubbed across his face and, when Yami reached up to take a hold of Yugi's wrist, he gasped at the angry raw wound on the palm of his hand. "Master, I'm sorry…"

"What are you talking about Aibou?" Yami felt frozen to the spot, his breath hitched in his throat as he tried to work out what do to next. "Aibou…"

Yugi's body tensed for a moment and then went slack, his head lolling back on his shoulders. The moment of indecisiveness passed and Yami stood, trying to ignore the stench from the blood smeared on his cheek or how light his hikari felt in his arms. _I should never have let him get this bad_. _I should have been watching more closely; I should have protected him!_

**-7-**

"Hana, come sit with us!"

"Um…" The brunette hesitated, lunch tray clutched tightly in her hands. It was the lunch period for the upper classes at Domino high and the cafeteria was a highly daunting place. Everybody was milling around while talking, yelling, or laughing enthusiastically and the din was making her head spin. How was she to refuse the kind girl's offer? "Okay…"

Anzu beamed as she led the new girl over to their table. "Here, sit here," she said, pulling a chair out for her. Hana nodded wordless and slid into the seat, her eyes glued to the tray in front of her. "The other guys will be here in a few minutes. How are you handling your first day?"

Hana shrugged noncommittally and pulled down on her blue skirt. She didn't understand how the girls could walk around so confidentially when it felt like you were flashing your panties with every step. "It's… okay. I'm sorry, you know my name but your's…?"

"It's Anzu." Sitting down next to Hana, Anzu dug her fork into the side-dish of macaroni and paused. It was completely understandable to be shy on your first day of school ( especially during the middle of the year when you'd be labeled as simply 'the new student' and tossed aside by everyone ) but the girl seemed almost terrified. Her hands were shaking as she slowly twisted the cap off of her iced tea. "Why'd your parents decide to send you out here? There are only two months left in the school year."

"Um, well my parents didn't." Hana thought for a moment, trying to pick her words carefully. "I'm here with my aunt and my uncle. There's a… Someone close to our family is very sick. We're here to help take care of him."

Anzu nodded while chewing her bite of food. On impulse after she swallowed, she added: "Yugi's sick. Yami went home to take care of him, I guess, after Jounouchi visited him… Jou's the boy that you were sitting next to."

There was a strained silence between the two; Anzu couldn't quite figure out why she had felt the need to explain that to Hana and Hana seemed too preoccupied with her drink to add anything. "Okay. So, Hana…"

"Anzu! Geeze, way to wait up for a guy. Thanks for that." Sneering mockingly at the blue-eyed brunette, Jou dropped his tray down across from her and plopped into his seat. Within moments he was joined by Honda, Otogi, and Ryou; Shizuka's class ate before them and Seto left during his lunch break to check up on Kaiba Corp. "I mean, what if I had really needed your help for something? It wouldn't matter to you. You'd just be off- Oh, hi Hana. What's up?"

Before Hana could answer, Otogi smacked his tray down next to Jounouchi's and punched him in the arm. "If you _ever_ threaten me like that again-"

"Ex_cuse_ me?" Jou was on his feet in a flash and had Otogi by the front of the shirt. "I can threaten anyone who's datin' my sister at anytime and if you have a problem with that then maybe you should consider seeing someone else."

"Shizuka is perfectly capable of taking care of herself so back _off_," Otogi growled, ripping Jou's hand off his shirt. Honda stared at the two impassively for a moment before something clicked.

"Wait… wait a second. Otogi, you're dating Shizuka now?" Honda glared at the black-haired boy. "I thought we both had agreed that she was off limits until we were out of high school."

Hana stared uncomfortably at the three angry teenage boys. It was hard imagining that the fate of the world had, at one point, been held partly in their hands. _No… I was right in my decision. She was right. What's been decided, it has to happen or else… _Next to her, Ryou coughed politely and poked at his food with his fork while Anzu shrugged and went back to eating. _How can they just sit there and watch this?_

_Hold up, wait a second._ "Bakura?" Hana blinked and looked at the white-haired boy sitting next to her. "Are you… Ryou Bakura? One, um, one of the top eight duelist from Battle City?" More than slightly startled, Ryou nodded slowly. "You… um, you were the only one I really paid attention to. I love your dueling style." It sounded so forced, lame, cheesy, fake, but it was the only thing she could think of to cover up her slip. "You seem a little different here…"

"That's because I'm not the duelist from Battle City." Hana's eyes widened slightly. "That was my… brother, Bakura. More like my twin really. He's the better dueler. I prefer standing on the sidelines…"

"Oh." Hana nodded and ran her finger around the lip of her iced tea bottle. The three boys were still bickering over Shizuka and Anzu had taken a book out of her backpack to read. "Can I ever meet this brother of yours?"

"Oh, sure. He's at home. Probably should be in school but he used to live somewhere else and there's hardly enough time left in the school year to make it worth trying to transfer him in…" Ryou frowned and cocked his head to the side. The color had drained from Hana's face and she was staring at him with an expression of shock and… horror. "Are you okay?"

"Okay? Am I okay?" She blinked and shook her head. _No. You didn't, couldn't, he tried to kill **everyone** and now you tell me that he's free…_ "I-"

"I have an announcement to make." All conversation, be it bickering, yelling, or the curiously disturbing talk between Ryou and Hana, died down when Seto walked over to the table. Right hand held up with a cell phone in it, he glanced at the various faces around the table and grimaced. "I just received a call from Yami."

"… and?" Jou released Otogi – he had grabbed the dice-boy's arms to keep him from trying to attack Honda – and cocked his head to the side. "Why would Yami be calling you Kaiba?"

"Because I was the only one who had his – or her – cell phone on." Seto scowled and snapped his phone shut, slipping it back into his pocket. "Yugi's fine. The mutt here must have let off some false alarm which is why Yami ran off so panicked. He'll be back in school by next week." Jou squelched a strangled yell and glared at the obnoxious CEO.

"Oh, that's great to hear!" Anzu smiled in relief and looked up at Jounouchi. "See? I told you you were being paranoid. Yugi probably just has some really bad cold and it just seems that much worse because of how busy he's been before now. His body's just telling him to slow down."

"That's not what you were sayin' yesterday!" Jou shot back, angry that Anzu would be taking Kaiba's side over his. Anzu shrugged and picked her book back up.

"Well that was before I heard from _Yami_ that Yugi was okay. I would trust Yami's word on that more than yours…"

"Hmph. Well if this lovely discussion is done then I'm going to head out. Unlike some people here I actually have work I need to get done." Hana stared after the imposing teen as he walked out of the cafeteria. _Second of three chosen duelists… _

"There is no _way_ I'm letting him get away with that." Snarling, Jou shoved his chair back under the table and stalked off after the brunette. Hana let out a deep sigh and rummaged through her bag before finding her copy of their world culture text book. Anzu had the right idea. Just sit silent and read during the lunch break; it was too hectic and confusing to pay attention to anything that went on.

_But now I know the Pharaoh trusts his High Priest now… and the Thief King isn't bound by the Ring._

**-7-**

"Marik? Marik!" The platinum-blond teen in question sighed and paused the TV program he was watching. It was Isis and she was panicked but when _wasn't_ she? The millennium necklace seemed to be far more of a curse with the way her visions came sporadically and most of the time they didn't even mean anything. _Which is probably why Atemu wanted to get rid of them_, he thought wryly. The last 'major' vision his sister had was about white death which, they had eventually discovered, meant that the milk was going to go bad. _He probably didn't want to deal with headache it caused._

"Coming sister dearest," he muttered. As he stepped out of his room into the hall, though, Marik nearly ran into a very-harried looking Isis. She grabbed his shoulders and forced him back into the room. "Woah! Isis, what's wrong?"

"The Ankh." Marik stared. "The Millennium Ankh, Marik! Where is it!"

"It… it's… you're scaring me, Isis. It's, um…" Too startled to think clearly, Marik turned away from Isis and walked over to his desk. Since the dark spirit possessing the dark half of Bakura ( it hurt Marik's head sometimes thinking about that ) had killed Shadi, a new keeper for the Ankh had been needed and it was unanimously decided to be him. Unlike some of the other Item bearers he had chosen not to be in continuous contact with his. While it had been a great honor to know that the Pharaoh trusted him enough to give him a second chance, Marik preferred not to give the dark side of him any opportunities to break lose.

After several tense and breathless seconds, Marik straightened and turned back around with the golden Ankh in his outstretched hands. "Here. Isis, why-?" He stopped suddenly, eyeing her more carefully. There was a bloody scratch along her cheek and dirt was smudged on her hands and neck. Worse, he could see she was no longer wearing the Millennium necklace. "Isis, what ha-?"

"The Scales are gone." Isis wrapped her hands around Marik's and squeezed, causing him to wince as the ankh dug into the flesh of his fingers. "I went to check on the Pharaoh's tomb and the scales… They attacked me and took the necklace. But before they did, I saw them…

"We have to go to Japan. We have to find the Pharaoh and warn him before it's too late."

**-7-**

It was deathly quiet out in the halls after the din from the cafeteria. A small 'click' to the right and Jou scowled, bolting after the sound. "Kaiba, you no-good dirty rotten-! When I get my hands on you!"

"You're going to do what?" The brunette was standing impassively in the stairwell and Jou paused, blinking. He had fully expected a full-scale chase that would end in Kaiba being driven away by the car that was most surely parked ( but still on ) out by the front of the school. To have him stop here and _wait_… "You almost disappointed me. I was sure you would have caught up with me before I even left the lunch room."

"You… you _wanted_ me to go after you…?" Jou would not have been more put off if the world had suddenly been yanked out from under him. "But why? You hate me. You hate _us_. You hate Yami. You… you just hate cause… that's what you do."

Seto grimaced and looked down. He could feel the start of an embarrassed flush spreading from his neck and the tips of his ears and Seto Kaiba would be _damned_ if the _mutt_ saw how upset those words made him. "I don't hate," he snapped back, raising his eyes to glare at Jou. "I have more important things to worry about than silly high school friendships." _Why am I even bothering to explain this to you? _"But Yugi's not okay. He at the hospital now and Yami doesn't want everyone worrying."

"Say what?" Jou froze and stared wide-eyed at Seto. He had known that Yug was in bad shape when he had visited him earlier but for him to already be in the hospital…? "But why wouldn't Yami want everyone else to know?" He blurted out desperately. "I mean, there's no way he can expect to keep that from everyone. Grandpa and Yug's mom are gonna find out and then Anzu's gonna find out when she calls to check up on him and-"

Seto stepped forward, crossing the distance between the two, and pressed a finger against Jounouchi's lips to silence him. "I didn't bother to ask Yami about his reasonings. Like Anzu said, he would know best for Yugi and if he doesn't want your little gang traipsing in and out of his hospital room at all hours of the day then I'm not going to be the messenger to cause that." He dropped his hand back down to his side then and turned away. "Yami said to tell you, though. Probably figured that if I didn't you'd start a crusade to try and figure out just what was going on."

"And he's right too. I'm not even sure if I should go along with this." Jou sighed and slumped back against the wall. His world was beginning to turn into such a confusing place and Katsuya Jounouchi did _not_ do confusing. He did right, he did wrong, and occasionally he was dabble in the shades of grey but only if the answers were clear-cut.

The dreams, the drawing, the girl – but Hana didn't seem to be anything other than a scared and slightly clueless exchange student. She knew her math all right ( Jou had been trying to copy off of her ) and seemed to absolutely love science but when it came to history she didn't know her dynasties from her revolutions.

"You better keep your mouth shut about this." Seto's voice was laced with worry, fear, and a tint of anger; Jou looked up in surprise. "If something bad happens to Yugi because you felt the ne-"

"So you really do love him." Seto started and looked back at the blond. "Don't worry… I love him too."

**-7-**

"Sister, calm down. _Please_. Isis!" Growing frantic as he watched – quite helplessly – as Isis set about putting their trip to Japan in motion, Marik moved toward his older sibling and placed his hand on her wrist, forcing her to hand the phone. She started and tried to pull back away but he tightened his grip. "Isis, stop and calm _down_ for a moment. You're not thinking rationally about this at all."

"Of course I am," she snapped back, glaring at her younger brother. "I saw them. I saw her. The Pharaoh would never… He would never suspect them. If I don't warn him, he's going to die."

"Warn him about what? Isis, how can you expect me to sit back and watch you turn into this crazed woman possessed by a vision when you won't even tell me who or what you saw?" Isis recoiled back into herself before letting her head hang down, shoulders slumping in defeat. Marik shook his head and placed a hand on her cheek, lifting her chin. "Isis, what did you see?"

"I saw… a massacre."

**-7-**

The trip to the hospital had been a nerve-wracking experience the Pharaoh never wanted to deal with again and he had made a promise to himself that once this ordeal was done he would start paying attention to Grandpa when he tried to teach him how to drive. Yugi had been totted off to the emergency room after Yami carried him in and for three hours he had to sit in a waiting room, filling out medical forms as best he could. _Any known allergies, any past history of kidney disease… does he feel safe at home?_ A quick call to Kaiba to ensure that no one would worry ( and that the CEO had indeed finished working out all the kinks in the papers to make Yami an actual citizen of Japan ) and he was allowed back to 'visit' with Yugi.

"_His core temperature has dropped down to 96 and there seems to be some internal bleeding…"_ The nurse who led him back eyed him levelly, her unsaid accusation of abuse burning in his ears. _"The wound on his hand doesn't look to be self-inflicted either."_

If it wouldn't have caused an even bigger headache, Yami would have banished her to the Shadow Realm on the spot_. How **dare** she accuse me of purposely hurting my hikari?_

**-7-**

"I couldn't see his face. He kept to the shadows but I saw him killing them. They were trying to leave and he used his power to lock them in and then cut them down. The last on, the girl, he was blaming everything on her."

**-7-**

"I'm sorry aibou…" Yami gripped Yugi's right hand tightly as he watched his hikari sleep. The younger boy grimaced and tossed his head to the side, caught up in some nightmare that Yami could do little to protect him from. "This should be happening to me, not you…" Still gripping Yugi's hand tightly, Yami placed his other hand on the Millennium Puzzle.

_The images on the stone tablet faded – the Black Magician and Blue Eyes White Dragon – the Dragon fell, the Magician laughed – the puzzle shattered and Yugi lay dead. _

Gasping loudly, Yami jerked back from Yugi and stared down at the Puzzle around his neck. While it had seemed obvious to him that this illness wasn't _natural_, the thought that it was _supernatural_ and linked somehow to the Items… "The Puzzle doesn't grant visions though," he whispered breathlessly, holding it up with shaky hands. "The Necklace does."

_Pharaoh._

Yami started and glanced up. Kneeling before him, at the base of the hospital bed, was the translucent image of the Black Magician. He raised his head and slowly stood, emerald green staff clutched tightly in his hands. "Black Ma-, no. Mahado." The man before him nodded.

_Pharaoh, there is a grave and evil threat. I tried to stop her but she's gone mad… she wants to destroy the Items to sever the connection between the Duel Monster world and your world. She wants to kill Yugi.  
_

"What? Who?"

**-7-**

"The girl in my vision was the same girl who attacked me today. I didn't want to believe it but…" Isis closed her eyes, placing her free hand over Marik's. "I don't know what's happened to her."

"Who?" Marik swallowed hard, unsure if he really wanted to force the answer to this question from his sister. She sounded so lost, so scared… "Who did you see?"

**-7-**

"The Black Magician Girl… Mana.

"Mana is trying to destroy the Millennium Items."


	5. Chapter Four

Several apologies. First, this is short and took forever to come out. I had written the first section the night I posted chapter three and then, well, life.

Second, this story is going on hiatus. I know, I know, I took off for a year and a half and now I'm taking off again. But this time it's for a good reason. Why? Well, I thought about the plot of the story and what would happen in the later chapters and I realized that there was no way I was going to get around writing the first story. So I'm taking a pause to do that. The prologue and first chapter are already done, hurray for that, and I intend to update it every week. Every Thursday, actually. Check my profile for the link.

Trust me, you want me to do that. Or else you'll run into some characters in later chapters of this and go 'who the _fuck_ is that?'

Third, I also want to go back and do a little rewriting and editing of the chapters. Little things like changing Hana to Hannah ( cause I'm strange ) and making sure there are no typos.

Bonus points if you figure out who Cassandra is.

**Chapter Four – I Shot the Pharaoh ( But I Did Not Shoot The Duel Master )**

"_All my thoughts are with you forever  
Until the day we'll be back together_

_I will be waiting for you."_

- Chorus, Bittersweet ( Within Temptation )

It was almost suffocatingly hot inside the stone temple but Mana knew better than to fidget or complain. She swept the dusty floor clean with her foot and sat down, legs crossed and hands placed on her knees. The older man across from her smiled and did the same. His long robes billowed around him and Mana mentally shook her head; if she could barely stand the heat with her garment then she could hardly imagine how _he_ was dealing with it.

_And that's what I want to learn. I want to learn to transcend everything to be a great mage like him._

"Mana, what are our duties?"

"It is our duty to protect the Pharaoh." Mahaado sighed and she frowned, thinking harder. "It… it is more than just to _protect_, to _serve_… we must think as if we were the Pharaoh to predict his moves. We must make his duties easier because he is more than Pharaoh; he is Ra himself and has the responsibilities of a God."

Mahaado eyed her thoughtfully for a moment before nodding. "Yes… I wouldn't have worded it that way but you are correct. Our duties lie in making sure the trials of the mundane world are kept to a minimum for the Pharaoh so that he can focus on the trials of being a God." Mana struggled to keep her pride from getting the better of her but she couldn't help it when she straightened, arching her back to sit more attentively. "But our duty lies to the Pharaoh above all. Tell me Mana, what would you do if you discovered a plot to end the Pharaoh's life?"

The magician in training resisted the urge to shrug. That was so _easy_. "I would inform you and the High Priest along with any other council members that I felt was necessary. I would _not_ inform the Pharaoh; he has too much to worry about already. And if necessary, I would take care of the threat myself."

"Even if it meant killing?"

Here Mana hesitated and finally gave into her urge to fidget. Plucking the fabric of her short skirt, she glanced down and nodded shortly. "Y-yes… I would kill to protect Pharaoh's life."

"Even if it meant killing the Pharaoh himself?"

**-7-**

Maxamillion Pegasus sighed as he watched the sunset, the glorious rays of purples and oranges blending together doing nothing to soothe him. He really _shouldn't_ be depressed; after all, he was one of the richest and most powerful people in the world. Creator of the wondrous game of Duel Monsters. Host of the (in)famous Duelist Kingdom Tournament. Founder and funder of several various wildlife preserves. Protector and keeper of the sacred Millennium Eye.

And yet nothing felt complete to him. Maybe it was the fact that everything he started was finished by someone else. Maybe it was the fact that he had receded to being nearly a nobody in the public's eye ( something that at one point he had thought he wanted; it was only now he realized it wasn't ). Or maybe it was that he was nearing sixty and had no one special in his life.

"I could help fix that." Bemused, Pegasus arched an eyebrow and twisted around to look behind him. A woman stepped out of the archway from his mansion, arms crossed in front of her chest. Tall and slender with light blond hair that swirled about her shoulders, she gave him a quirked smile and walked closer. "Of course, you'd have to win first." At that he noticed the Duel Disk on her arm, a standard blue and silver.

"Help fix _what_, Lady?" Pegasus asked, looking around to see where his guards were at. Any self respecting millionaire just wasn't complete with_out_ them – Kaiba certainly went crazy, especially when it came to dear little Mokuba – and now, after all their training and pay, they were no where to be found. Quite a waste in his opinion, although this woman… "I'm afraid I can't follow when you start in the middle of a conversation."

"Don't play the fool with _me_, Pegasus." She moved faster, faster than he thought possible, and suddenly he found himself pressed back against the balcony. She smelled faintly of lavender, stronger still of waxed paper, and Pegasus couldn't help but noticed the way her white shirt clung to the curves of her breasts. "You want companionship. I want something that you have. Either way, one of us wins." The momentary lapse in composure disappeared and she stepped back, crossing her arms again. "I just need to know if you're going to be man enough to try and take it."

"And if wishes were horses than fools would ride," Pegasus retorted, tearing his eyes from her chest to her face. She smirked and traced one manicured finger along her arm. "I've had more than enough of my share of ancient magic in my life and I have no doubt that you'll be dragging more in. As much as it pains me to say this I must ask of your leave, Lady."

"And I'm afraid I must _refuse_, Pegasus." The edges of her mouth pulled up in a faint snarl, her nails digging into her arm. He shivered at the implied threat. "We're going to duel. Better get your Duel Disk ready."

Pegasus nodded thoughtfully and stood after a moment. "I must regretfully inform you that I lack a Duel Disk in my possession but there is an old holo arena downstairs that we could use for our pleasure." She licked her lips and smirked and he felt the start of a blush burn up from his neck and checks. "If I should lose, what is it that my lady desires?"

"Your eye. The Millennium eye." The woman lowered her arms, hands on her hips, and cocked her head to the side.

Pegasus hesitated for a moment, his body autopiloting both of them through his mansion. It really wasn't much of a decision; if he refused, the woman would more than likely take the item by means of force. "Acceptable terms… but I want to know the name of the one I'm going to lose to." At this she smiled, a true one not meant to confuse his mind with thoughts of sex.

"Cassandra."

**-7-**

"Hey, um…"

"Yeah Anzu?"

The brunette girl paused, back pack hanging haphazardly against her back while being held in one hand. Honda paused, cocking his head to the side. Even though Anzu normally rode the bus with Jou and Shizuka ( and Yugi but Yugi wasn't in school lately ) she had decided to walk home with him. Maybe, just maybe this meant… "Well, Hana. She said something weird today."

"Yeah? What?"

"Well, she said she was here because a family member was sick and… and cause her family was out here to help take care of them."

Honda rolled his eyes, impatient to get moving. Even though she was wearing a skirt with no leggings Anzu didn't seem to notice the weather and it was _cold_. "Yeah, and how is that so unusual?"

"Well she's an exchange student and she's living with Otogi. Why would she have come out here with her family if she's staying with him?"

**-7-**

Marik stared at Isis for a moment before enveloping her in his arms, stroking his black hair as she broke down in jerky tears. He cooed and made soft, comforting noises as she clung to the fabric of his thin cotton shirt. "Shh, Isis…"

It didn't make sense to him, though. Why would _Mana_ want to steal the Millennium Necklace from his sister? Better yet, _how_? Mana was _dead_ and even though a form of her still existed in the Black Magician Girl they still weren't the same person ( unlike Mahaado and the Black Magician ). And while Bakura and the Pharaoh were resurrected from three thousand years ago she wasn't. Her soul had gone on to rest.

Even better question – how could Mana be stealing anything if Isis saw her being murdered? "Isis… are you _sure_ it was Mana?"

Isis twisted and hesitated in his arms before shaking her head. She slowly peeled away from him, tear tracks streaking her cheeks and adding to her disheveled look. "The girl in my vision was the Black Magician Girl, I have no doubt about that, but the one that attack me… She looked nearly identical to Mana."

"The way that Yugi and Ryou look like Atemu and Bakura?" Her eyes widened and she nodded rapidly, hands fisting his shirt. Marik winced and gently pushed his sister away. "Then maybe… honestly, I have no idea what that would mean. Maybe the Pharaoh would know."

"Maybe the Pharaoh would know what?" Both Ishtar siblings turned, startled, when Rishid walked into the kitchen, a paper bag of groceries held in one arm. Neither had heard the front door open and the tomb keeper's guardian looked at the two guiltily. He hadn't _intended_ on scaring them…

Marik and Isis exchanged a glance. True, Rishid had stuck by their side through all the horrible things that had happened when the power of the Millennium Rod had taken over Marik and true he had nearly sacrificed his own life for theirs… Dragging him into yet another mess seemed cruel and unfair. "It's…" Isis nodded as Marik stumbled with words. "It's nothing, really. Just, um-"

"Don't." He smiled, placing the bag onto the counter. "I believe I'm as much of a part of this family as either of you now. Don't try to protect me. I can make my own decisions."

"And maybe it is Fate," Isis mumbled quietly, "that the three Tomb Keepers be the ones to warn and protect the Pharaoh."

**-7-**

_Please… Master…_

Yugi groaned and slowly fluttered his eyes open. It hurt. Breathing hurt. Moving hurt. _Fuck_, er, well, _everything_ hurt. "W-what? Who's there?"

_Master…_ He was floating in a pool of darkness and something swirled and coalesced in front of him. Peach and tan and purple and pink and he raised a hand, shielding his eyes from the light. _Master, I need your help. We need your help. _

"We?"

**_Yes, oh great and mighty King Of Games._** Next to the pink and the purple swirled silver and blue; next to that red and black. Shapes and form were solidifying, awkward angles poking out from a sea of mist. Yugi felt ill watching, felt something pounding into the back of his skull but looking away was out of the question.

**His poison is seeping into you. You must let your other self know not to fight.** This voice, unlike the other two, was male. All three sounded familiar and ached, sweet and red like biting on tinfoil. **The Pharaoh is confused and apt to act on false information.**

Yugi stretched one hand out, brushing the mists. "Who are you?"

The pink and blue solidified first and he screamed. He never knew it was possible for there to be so much blood.


End file.
